After talking to a few body shop guys, I have finally come to the conclusion that I am soooo confused:confused:


The car is ready to be painted but after all the talk about waterborne paint jobs heading this way in July, I was thinking about going to a single stage paint vice a BC/CC. Why? Money being a part of it since the dollar doesn't stretch like it used to and I've read on many postings that the single stage paints of today are alot stonger than those of the past. My body shop knowledge is quite small so, if anybody can enlighten me on what to do, please chime in...

hey dan,
don't be afraid of waterborne basecoat.my bodyshop has recently made the transition from solvent based to waterborne.the stuff is slick.right off the bat,the waterborne isn't new technology.in fact several automakers have been using it for several years already.the colour matches are better(important for us on spot repairs), and less material is required which is better for you(the thicker the mil thickness,the more likely it is to chip from stones,etc...).the paint preperation steps must be way fussier(any corners cut will show like crazy...there's no cheating with this stuff) which ultimately gives you a better product.

single stage has it's limitations as always.the main one is the lack of u.v. protecting clearcoat.it's way harder to correct flaws in single stage and really tough to get a metallic to appear even(without tiger stripes)when applying.

consider the move to waterborne from solventbased similar to the move from laquer to base/clear.the technology is there man,so you might as well get the best you can,right?

leftcoast carl.

Don't you have to change the nozzle in most guns to accept the water based stuff??

Don't you have to change the nozzle in most guns to accept the water based stuff??
yes you do.generally you need top go bigger(say a 1.3 to a 1.5) aircap.also,poor quality sprayguns don't have stainless steel inners.this is a must!!
keep in mind that waterborne will almost certainly prevent the hobbyist painter from doing this at home.i assumed that you had a shop doing this for you.am i correct?if you are doing this at home,forget everything i said and go solvent based while you still can.
the waterborne is the easiest solution to become low v.o.c.(volitile organic compound) complient to meet the canadian cut-off date.it states that all automotive finishes must comply by jan 1st 2010.this isn't great for the hobbyist,but it is good for the environment and the shops that will spend the bucks to complete this expensive changeover.
good luck,
leftcoast carl.

I am currently saving up for the body shop but was trying to get some knowledge of the single vs BC/CC stage paints.

It gets real crazy with all the talk talk :D:D:D

Mabey I can show guys a little that will help :hurray:

www.howardsbackyardautobody.com :beers: